


Virgin's Circle

by romioneB



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Book 7: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, F/M, Horcrux Hunting, Loss of Virginity, Salazar Slytherin's Locket
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-08
Updated: 2020-12-10
Packaged: 2021-03-10 03:21:52
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 16,303
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27957569
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/romioneB/pseuds/romioneB
Summary: Ron and Hermione find themselves trapped in Virgin's Circle. Only one way to get out! (Smut, romance, angst, etc.)
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley
Comments: 16
Kudos: 59





	1. Chapter 1

**Hermione**

The sunlight bounced around in the tent, making everything look bright orange. Another day had slowly passed and sunset would soon be approaching. Hermione Granger was sitting on her camp bed reading, her wild hair thrown back into a low ponytail.

She had of course read the book that was resting in her lap many times before, desperately trying to find _anything_ that she could have previously missed. She knew that there had to have been a reason that Dumbeldore had left it to her, she was sure of it. Not having the right answers she was looking for was only adding to her already stressed mind and growing list of problems. Internally berating herself, she examined every word closely, knowing that she only needed to try harder.

Her head jerked up as Ron pulled back the opening and walked into the tent. When his eyes met hers he offered her a warm smile and she hastily looked back down at the book, not returning it.

She watched from her peripheral as he sat down at the small table across the tent. She could vaguely tell that he was lightly tapping his fingers on the wood, his knee bouncing up and down but he said nothing. She knew he was staring at her. She could _feel_ his blue eyes intensely watching.

Since he had been back, he hadn't even been trying to hide the fact that he stared. _Before,_ him doing so would have elated her, but now she only felt anger.

He had left them. For _weeks_. He had left even though she and Harry had _needed_ him. She had run after him screaming his name, and still he had gone, seemingly indifferent to her cries.

It had been agony for her the whole time he had been gone. She hadn't coped well at all in his absence, her anxiety for his safety a constant rock in her chest.

Once he was gone she had soon realized that he was the glue that held them all together and without him, there was no way that they could win. Most days, her and Harry had hardly said a word to each other, both hurt and feeling as if they were missing a vital piece of themselves.

But then, he had come back, and with him there was _hope._ He had saved Harry's life, instantly earning back his forgiveness. She had not been as easy to convince.

She knew that he was sorry. She saw it in his face that he was ashamed of himself for leaving. When she had laid eyes on him she had felt both instant relief and white hot fury. She had wanted to throw herself into his arms and sob, and also cause him as much pain as possible for what he had put her through.

He was back, and she never wanted him to leave again, but she wasn't at all ready to forgive him. Her practical mind knew that they needed him, but her heart was still bruised, and she wasn't going to easily forget what he had done.

She knew that he was desperate for her forgiveness, he had tried to apologize to her many times, but she would hear none of it. To her, it really wasn't that simple. She had made up her mind that she wouldn't... _couldn't_ let him make her feel like that again, it had nearly broken her. So, she had decided to mentally build a wall to protect herself, to not let him in.

Oh and he was trying _so_ hard to get in. He was driving her up the wall with his sugary sweet demeanor and obvious groveling. He tried to do everything for her (as if she couldn't do it herself!) Trying to take over cooking for her, offering to take her watches so she could 'rest', cleaning up the tent as best as he could (which he wasn't very good at but not for lack of trying) He tried over and over to start friendly conversations with her, but she had yet to take the bait and only gave him short one word answers. Being his best friend for years, she knew that the cold shoulder was the best way to drive him insane. Secretly she felt a sick satisfaction that she could make him feel even a fraction of what he had made her feel.

 _Before,_ if someone would have asked her to pick someone who she trusted her life with wholeheartedly, the answer would have been Ron. No one was as protective of her than he was, she knew that he cared for her. He cared for his family and his best friends more than anything. He was always the first to take the mickey on those he cared for, but if another decided to be malicious towards them, Ron would put himself in the middle in a heartbeat. He had stood up for her or Harry more times than she could count, and that was one of the many things that made her love him.

 _Love._ She had known for years now, that she was in love with one of her best friends. It was one of the many facts of her life that just... _was._ The sky was blue, she was a witch, and she was in love with Ron Weasley.

She had always been happy that he was such a big part of her life, even if just as a friend. Truth be told, she had pretty much given up hope a while ago that her feelings would be reciprocated. She had seen what kind of girls that he seemed to fancy, and she was a far cry from them. She wasn't a girly kind of girl, she didn't wake up and doll herself up to impress the opposite sex. She was on the plain side, with extremely out-of-control hair, and not much in the way of curves with her too-skinny, petite body. Also, seeing as he had had many chances to show his interest in her if there had been any, she seriously doubted there was. Sure, there had been moments when she thought ' _maybe_ …' but they were few and far between, and she refused to live on false hope. So she had continued pining for him secretly, never willing to take that extra step for fear of ruining what they had.

She turned a page of the book, but was no longer reading. She could still feel him staring, and could no longer concentrate on her task. She sighed and looked up.

"What do you _want_?"

He startled, seemingly having not expected her to speak to him. "I...uh..I don't want anything…"

"Then _stop_ looking at me." She returned her eyes downwards.

"I'm sorry." he mumbled.

She huffed. "Of course you are Ron."

He stood up. "I'm going into the kitchen for some tea, would you like some? Or is there anything else I can get you?"

That was _it_. She stood up and threw her book to the ground, the sound making him jump in surprise. "Stop. Being. So. Damn. NICE!"

His mouth gaped open. "You... don't want me to be nice?" He asked slowly, looking at her as if she had gone mental.

"Aggghhhhh!" She spun around. She needed to get out of there, away from him.

She hastily grabbed her coat and sped out of the tent, the cold air hitting her face and cooling down her anger just a bit. Harry had been sitting outside against a tree, seemingly deep in thought and her sudden appearance and obvious anger made him look up at her, his eyes questioning.

"Where are you going?" He asked, his brows furrowed in confusion.

"I don't know. Looking for berries or something." She muttered, still hurriedly walking away.

"Hermione, you know it's not safe for you to just wander away alone like that."

She turned to reply, and saw Ron coming out of the tent, pulling his coat on. "He's right you know, I'll join you."

Her anger returned in full force. "No! you will _not_ join me. Harry can come, _you_ can sit and watch the tent."

Harry eyed both of them. She felt a little guilty as she knew that he hated to get in between any conflict of theirs. "Uh...Hermione, there isn't really any need to go find berries..we still have some food from the muggle market that should last us a week at least. And besides...I think any berries would be long frozen by now and-"

"That's not the _point_!" She yelled as she stamped her foot. She knew she was acting borderline childish, but at that moment, she didn't even care.

"Then what _is_ the point?" Ron said so quietly that she barely heard him speak. She looked at him then and saw the hurt in his face. As mad as she was, looking at his obvious hurt made her ache. It _almost_ made her want to just forgive and forget, but she refused to do that so quickly and looked away at Harry.

"Harry, come on." She demanded, completely ignoring Ron's question.

Harry looked to Ron, and she watched as the two shared a silent conversation. Ron very subtly shook his head at his best mate, pleading with his eyes.

Harry sighed. "I uh...I think I'm just going to stay here actually. Ron is better at finding stuff than I am anyway."

Annoyance rose up in her but she couldn't blame Harry, he had just gotten his best friend back. "Fine." she huffed. She turned her eyes to Ron. "But do _not_ talk to me." and she started quickly walking away, not bothering to wait for him.

**Ron**

Could he do nothing right? He had been trying his damndest to make her see that he was repentant, that every fibre of his being regretted the huge ass mistake he had made when he had chosen to leave. He was so guilt ridden for leaving Harry, but even more so for leaving her.

He had made a promise to himself years ago after the department of mysteries, that he would do everything in his power to not let anything bad happen to her. He was disgusted at himself because since then, he had only let her down over and over again in different ways; the tipping point being when he had abandoned her. How could he have possibly let her down...let _them_ down in such a momentous way? Part of him knew that it had been the locket's hold on him that had led him to make the choice to go, but the fact was that he should have been stronger.

Harry and Hermione were admittedly the most important people to him. When he had befriended them he had felt for the first time, a real sense of _belonging_. Yes, he loved his family, but he had never felt especially important compared to his siblings. He had always been an insecure person, for as long as he could remember he was comparing himself to everyone around him and his friends had been no exception to the rule. Sure, he then had to compare himself to Harry bloody Potter, but at the end of the day he loved his best friend and would gladly stand behind him in everything. And then there was Hermione, who he felt outshined them both. She was so brilliant and perfect and amazing, and he could never grow bored being with her.

He had finally realized around the time that he had made that promise to himself, that his feelings for her were not just platonic. He had always had _different_ feelings for her than anyone else in his life, but he had never dwelled on it. Even after the Yule Ball incident, it had taken a while to admit to himself that his feelings for Krum were not just because he felt protective over her, but raging jealousy towards the famous quidditch player. How could he ever compete with someone like that?

Hermione wasn't the type of girl that would turn all heads when she walked into a room, but to him she was the most beautiful witch he'd ever known. It was more than just the way that she looked. It was the way that she did, well, everything. He was always enthralled with her, whether she was studying or eating, talking, or just deep in thought. His eyes were constantly drawn to her and he had to keep check on himself at all times so nobody would notice him ogling.

Through the years he had memorized the way that she did things. He knew that she bit her bottom lip when she was concentrating (and bloody hell it drove him mad in the best kind of way) He knew that she always carried herself prim and proper, completely opposite from the way he carried himself. He knew the look she got in her eyes when she was hatching some sort of plan, and the look she got when she was being mischievous. He felt that he knew her more than most, and he couldn't help but feel proud of that.

Regrettably, he _also_ knew that she couldn't feel the same about him as he did about her. Why would she fancy him when he had absolutely nothing to offer her. There had been times where he thought she _might_ feel something more for him, but he quickly talked those thoughts down knowing that he wouldn't be able to take the disappointment when she inevitably would reveal to him that he was just a friend to her. He had _thought_ about telling her how he felt, or even imagined just going for it and kissing her, but always decided not to. The fear of ruining their friendship was too real. With a pang, he remembered that he had almost ruined it already and he hoped that he would never fuck up and make that big of a mistake again.

He watched her forging ahead with purpose, her hair escaping her ponytail and blowing around her head, her feet stamping the ground. They had gone past the wards a couple of minutes ago and she showed no signs of slowing down. He knew he could very easily catch up with her, but he stayed a few feet behind, giving her space while also eyeing the thick forest around them for anything suspicious.

It had made him wince when she had ordered that Harry go with her instead. The locket had made him think that she had been in love with the black haired boy, taunting him and making him insane with jealousy. Luckily with it being gone, he had no longer felt that way but her demand had still hit a sore nerve. Thank goodness for Harry not listening and deciding to stay back. He knew he owed him one, as it was always scary to not obey an angry Hermione.

When she had stormed out of the tent, he thought that maybe if they had a nice walk, she would calm down enough for her to finally talk with him. All he wanted was to just have an actual conversation with her, to _try_ and explain himself. He knew that at the end of the day, there really was _no_ valid excuse for his leaving them. But maybe if she would just _listen_ to him for a few minutes, he could make her see it from his point of view, even if just a little. So he plodded along behind her, saying nothing and waiting for her to tire out.

Eventually she slowed down to a normal paced walk, and he got to where they were walking side by side, a few feet apart from each other. He still didn't speak, his eyes straight ahead, his hands in his pockets.

She side eyed him. "Why did you insist on coming with me?"

He sighed "Why did you insist on leaving?"

She took a long moment to respond. "Maybe I'm just tired of you breathing down my neck Ron."

"I wasn't breathing down your neck! I was just about on the other side of the tent!" He said incredulously.

She put her hands up exasperatedly. "You don't have to be in close proximity to drive me crazy!" She paused. "It's just that you seem to care so much what I think or do now when you should have cared earlier...you know, before you _left._ " The scorn was apparent on her face.

And there it was. He rubbed his face. "Hermione. I will tell you sorry every _day_ for the rest of my life if I need to. I'm a complete arse, the worst of the fucking worst!"

"True"

"I'm going barmy with you being so angry with me _all of the_ _time_." She stopped walking and glared at him.

He put his hands in front of him quickly. "Not that you don't have _every_ right to be angry! And I certainly don't deserve your forgiveness ye-"

"Well it seems that you are at least right about a few things." She snorted, her arms crossing against her chest.

He went on, grateful he was at least getting words in. "When I...left, I really thought that I was doing you two a favor, that you would get things done faster without me slowing you down. The locket made me _hate_ myself Hermione, I don't even want to tell you everything it made me think! I wasn't in my right mind when I made that choice to go, if I had been in my right mind you know I would _never_ have gone."

She looked up at him, and he was surprised to see tears in her eyes. "But you did." she whispered. She blinked and a tear fell from her left eye, and without thinking he reached out to wipe it away. When she saw his hand going towards her, she jumped back, anger coming back into her face. " _Don't."_

He would rather she had slapped him than look at him the way she was looking at him just then. Of course she didn't want him to comfort her. Maybe she even hated him and he would never be able to fix it. He tried to make his face as blank as possible to hide the fact that his heart felt like it was crumbling inside of his chest.

"What do you want me to say Hermione?" He pleaded, knowing that his voice was on the verge of breaking. "Listen, I know that things can't go back to how they were before. I'm realistic. But things _can't_ continue like this either. It's always been the three of us against the world. We can't do anything if we aren't working together. We need to be at least civil. I need you back on my side Hermione."

She stared off into the trees for a long moment, obviously deep in thought. "You're right." She finally relented. "We really do need to put our focus on Harry and finding these horcruxes. Our personal feelings shouldn't be getting in the way of that. We should be able to be cordial to each other... but Ron, that doesn't mean that we are _friends_ again or that I forgive you. I just know that the task at hand is more important than our problems and like it or not we have a really important job to do."

He nodded, happy that she had at least agreed to be civil. That was a start, and all he could hope for for the time being. He reached his hand out. "Cordial _not quite-_ friends with the same end goal?" He slightly grinned at her.

She looked down at his outstretched hand and rolled her eyes. The action made his stomach happily flip, she hadn't rolled her eyes at him in so long.

She ignored his hand but told him that was agreeable enough, her tone implying that was all that would be spoken of it today. She turned and started looking around. "I don't see any berries. We should get back though, it's getting pretty cold out here and we probably have walked too far away than we should have."

He agreed, not daring to mention that this whole thing had been her idea in the first place and that they hadn't even so much as looked for any berries.

It was already starting to get dark. As they were walking back he let her go ahead of him again, not wanting to smother her and feeling that things had taken a small step in the right direction.

He was walking slowly and dragging his feet when he noticed that she had stopped and was intently staring down. He got closer and realized that there was a large stone circle just under the earth, and she was kicking away the thin layer of snow and dirt that covered most of it. He figured that it was about 12 feet in diameter and saw that there was writing on the stone, but it was in unfamiliar symbols and he had no idea what it might have read. He walked up next to her on the stone as she bent down to use her hands to uncover more of it.

After a few seconds of doing so, she suddenly let out a gasp.

"Ron, get out! Now!" She said urgently.

He immediately took several large steps backwards and backed into what seemed to be an invisible shield on the edge or the circle. Using his hand, he quickly walked all the way around, feeling the invisible wall, and finding no gap, he trailed his hands up and found that the shield..or whatever it was, was dome-shaped and completely around them.

"Uh...can't get out. There's some sort of invisible dome around us." He honestly wasn't too worried about it. He had certainly faced much scarier situations in his life than being trapped in an invisible dome in the middle of the forest. Besides, Hermione was with him and she knew pretty much everything and would certainly be able to free them no problem.

He looked down at her. She was still kneeling on the ground but she stared straight ahead, not moving at all. Although she was clearly trying, she couldn't hide the panic all over her face as he knew her too well. For the first time, he started to feel a little nervous.

"Do you know what this thing is or how to get out? I certainly don't want to miss dinner." He grinned, trying to lighten the mood but she didn't respond to him.

"Hermione...what's going on?" he tried. She wouldn't look at him, but he saw her jaw tighten and she clamped her lips tight.

"What the _hell_ Hermione, you're really starting to freak me out here."

She still didn't respond, but she glanced up at his confused face for a moment before looking down again, very slightly nodding her head.

"Have you _forgotten_ how to talk?"

"Shut _up_ Ronald. I'm thinking."

"Well why don't you do it out loud? That way I can have a bloody idea of what's going on."

Barely over a whisper, she said a few words that sounded like they were in another language.

"What does _that_ mean?"

"You would know it as..Virgin's Circle"

He laughed. "Good one Hermione."

He had of course heard of Virgin's Circle. It was brought up sometimes in a joking manner, specifically in the boys dorm. " _I would love to be trapped in Virgin's Circle with so-and-so_ " etc.

Supposedly, if two of-age magical virgins happened to stumble onto it, it would use ancient magic to trap them there until they were _no longer_ virgins. He had heard that it was actually a real thing, but had never really thought much about it.

He stared at her, she was still silent, her cheeks slightly pink. "Oh shite. You're _serious_?"

He knew that she was. Her face made it quite apparent that she was, but he was so incredulous that the words had just come out of him.

She stood up and faced him, her hands on her hips. "Of course I'm serious! Do you think that I would _joke_ about something like this?! Do you think I just want to shag you right now in the middle of the bloody woods?!" Her voice coming out high pitched and frenzied.

"I...didn't say...I...what?" He stuttered.

She started wringing her hands, and he found his voice. "Um, I mean...you're _you._ Surely you know how to get us out of this...situation?" He rubbed the back of his neck.

She shook her head. "From what I've read, it's very old magic, and impossible to ge-"

He cut her out with a barking laugh."Ha! Hermione! It's so damn simple! We just apparate to the other side of this thing. Really easy right?"

She let out a sarcastic laugh. "Oh YES! Ron you are a GENIUS! I can't believe that you have figured it out! Hundreds of years this thing has been around, and no one has _ever_ tried _apparition!_ I cannot believe what a HERO you are Ronald Weasley!"

He didn't respond, but furrowed his brow at her outburst.

She went on. "Of _course_ that won't work!" She closed her eyes and pinched the top of her nose. "Try it if you wish, but that kind of magic won't work in here." she mumbled in a defeated voice.

"I was only trying to help. But obviously if you say that it won't work, then I believe you. You always know more than I do." He shrugged. "So what do we do?"

She put her hands over her face and shook her head slowly.

He gulped. _Fuck._ Were they really going to be forced to shag to get out of this thing? Of course he had thought about having sex with her, all of the time in fact...but it had been a deepest desire kind of thing for him rather than a future inevitable action. He had always been randy as hell for her and living in the tent had been a whole new form of torture for him as she was always right _there._ Sleeping so close to her was probably the worst of it. He would lay there and imagine himself crawling into her bed and touching every part of her and burying himself inside of her, but knowing that he couldn't. His sexual frustration was at an all time high and he had to sneak off to go for a wank as often as he could get away with (which wasn't near enough in his opinion)

But now knowing that they would _have_ to have sex didn't make him happy, instead he was terrified. All he wanted from her right now was her forgiveness. He had been willing to work on that for as long as it would take, years even. But now they were stuck in this thing and she hadn't yet forgiven him for leaving...could hardly even look at him, much less any more than that. The idea that she would even let him get close to her was preposterous. How the fuck was this going to go? He ran his fingers through his hair. He thought she hated him now, _shagging_ her when she certainly didn't want to would make it so much worse.

He started pacing back and forth to one side of the circle to the other, panic settling in."So we have to have... _sex_? Are there any specific rules with this thing? Is there a time limit? What will happen if we can't- what if we-"

She reached out and grabbed his shoulders and he stopped.

"Please stop pacing and calm down! I'm already nervous enough and you are making it so much worse." She suddenly seemed to realize that she was touching him, and pulled her arms away.

He looked at her and knew he needed to calm himself not only for his sake, but for hers too. "Yeah. Yeah you're right. I'm sorry. I can calm down."

"As for the rules..I can tell you all that I know. Virgin's Circle is not in one particular place. It randomly travels around, popping up in heavily wooded areas. Once it traps and releases those who get caught in it, it vanishes to its next destination. Only...intercourse will work in this situation. Whoever made it lived hundreds of years ago, and it is widely believed that it was made for the means of conceiving a child of magical blood-"

His head snapped up, his eyes wide. "I have to get you _pregnant_?!"

"No no." She shook her head. "The contraception charm prevents that. This circle was made long before such a spell to prevent pregnancy was invented so it's easy to cheat in that regard."

Ron bit the inside of his cheek, questions flooding him. "But earlier you said magic wouldn't work in here."

Apparition or any kind of traveling spells will not work, while other spells will. We cannot get out, but we _can_ use magic. And as for the time limit question. I haven't read anything that suggests that there is one..."

"What about Harry? He's bound to come looking for us soon."

She looked as if she had just realized this. She quickly conjured up her Patronus and spoke to it. "Harry. Ron and I have caught ourselves in a little situation that might take a while. Don't worry, we are completely fine. Stay in the tent and don't wait up for us. Just trust me please. We will be back." Then they both watched as the glowing otter raced off with her message.

**Don't hate me! I'm sorry for the cliff-hanger, but this one was too long and I was only planning on 4 chapters. Chapters are already written but will be gone over critically once more before posting!**


	2. Chapter 2

She looked as if she had just realized this. She quickly conjured up her patronus and spoke to it. "Harry. Ron and I have caught ourselves in a little situation that might take a while. Don't worry, we are completely fine. Stay in the tent and don't wait up for us. Just trust me please. We will be back." Then they both watched as the glowing otter raced off with her message.

"What if he doesn't listen and comes looking for us and...sees?" Ron asked, his ears going red.

"Once the shield is up, no one from the outside can see in. It's like we aren't even here."

It had started to get warm, and they both started to feel flustered in their several layers of clothing. Although outside it must have been as cold as ever, the inside of the dome was becoming hotter by the minute. Ron rubbed the back of his neck. "Bloody hot in here innit?"

"It creates a perfect temperature inside to accommodate...things." Her cheeks turned slightly pink.

Ron took off his jacket and dropped it onto the ground. He then removed his thick jumper and dropped it unceremoniously on top of his jacket. He stood in jeans and a faded t-shirt, already feeling much better without the extra layer of clothing on his body.

Hermione followed suit until she too, was in her t-shirt and jeans.

Just then, a large rectangle shape slightly popped up out of the stone in the middle of the circle. It still looked like stone but upon further inspection it was soft and padded and slightly resembled a mattress. It even had a long pillow that was also made from stone, but transfigured into the same softness.

Ron gulped and looked up at Hermione. She looked as nervous as he felt, her lip in between her teeth. "I'm...I'm not ready for this yet."

He walked up to her, hesitantly putting a hand on her arm."Listen. You said there's no time limit right? I want you to know that this is completely on your terms. Just...whenever you're ready. And we'll move slowly... make it comfortable. I don't really know what I'm doing...but I promise to try and make it...I don't know, _not horrible?_ I know this is so...awkward...and I know that this isn't the right time, place, or...person that you would have wanted."He tried not to grimace at the person bit. "but since we're being forced into this...I'll try for you….your terms alright?"

**Hermione**

She looked up at him, his eyes so honest and she was instantly more calm. "Thank you." she said quietly. "I just...I know you said everything will be on _my_ terms...but I think...I think it'd be best if you are the one...leading things you know?"

He stared at her, biting his lip, seemingly thinking about her words. "Can you elaborate a little?"

She felt her face heat up, why couldn't she control her stupid blushing?! "I just...I know almost next to nothing about being...intimate with another person. I mean obviously I know the basics but... you being a guy I'm sure you know more than I do and" She sighed. "It's just...I _trust_ you with this Ron."

She watched him nod slowly. "Ok." He paused. "Just promise me..that whatever happens...you won't hate me."

He looked so vulnerable and she wanted to reassure him. "Of course I won't! This isn't your fault. How could I hate you for this?"

"I just don't want to screw it up. I know that for girls, the first time is a pretty big deal and...we're best friends y'know? Or at least we were before I went and fucked it all up anyway." He said bitterly.

She remembered that she was supposed to still be mad at him, but watching him now she felt it all melting away. He was really being so considerate of her with all of this, and he was being so open which wasn't normal for him. Perhaps he had done a lot of growing up in the weeks that he had been gone but she hadn't allowed herself to notice?

She allowed herself to really look at him then. In reality she'd wanted him for so long, but it was something that she only thought about when she would allow herself to imagine what it would be like. She'd seen him shirtless before, like when he was changing clothes. He was always very fast though, and she had a feeling that he must have been a little self conscious about his pale skin and freckles, although she didn't understand why.

One night months ago, she had walked by his sleeping form in the tent and saw that he had managed to kick his blanket down, giving her a full view of him only in his pants. She had hungrily studied him, her eyes slowly roaming all over his exposed skin. She had felt such longing, overwhelmed with the desire to touch him had made her ache.

The times that she managed to get enough privacy to touch herself, she had always thought of him. His body over hers, his hands all over her, her hands all over him..just the thought was tantalizing. Was being trapped in the circle really a blessing in disguise?

She was brought out of her thoughts by Ron gently rubbing her shoulder and talking softly. "Let's just...lay down and we can talk. About whatever."

She nodded and they both took off their boots and socks. They took a few steps and gingerly laid down next to each other, their bodies not quite touching. She looked up at the now dark sky, snow very lightly falling through the trees, but it wasn't reaching them.

They laid there for what could have been hours, talking like they never had before. He started rambling about crazy stories from his childhood, making her laugh at all the wacky situations that him and his siblings had gotten themselves into over the years. She went on about her own parents, and told him of their lavish vacations they had had while she was growing up. She expressed that she had enjoyed them, but always felt rather lonely and would have loved having a bunch of crazy siblings to keep her company. He told her that sometimes he had wished to be an only child in order to get undivided attention from his parents, but at the end of the day he wouldn't trade in his siblings for it. They talked about their earlier years at Hogwarts, and all the trouble they had caused over the years. They were laughing, relaxed and immensely enjoying each other's company.

After a while, they had stopped talking and were staring up in comfortable silence. Ron was first to cut short the quiet moment.

"Do you ever think about the future? Like what it will be like once this war is really over?"

She took a minute to respond. "I try not to."

He turned his head to her, a confused look on his face. "Why not?"

"Well. I suppose because I want to focus on ending it, rather than dreaming about what it will be like when...if it does end."

"But you have to think about it sometimes right?"

"I do. I just said that I try not to, not that I don't."

"Hm. So...what do you see?"

"In my future?"

"Yeah."

"A lot of things. Some realistic...some not so much."

"What do you see that's unrealistic?"

She smiled. "Why Ronald! That's the longest word you've ever used."

"Oi!" He nudged her with his elbow, laughing. "Rude! But don't try to change the subject."

"Well career-wise first of all-"

"You know as well as I do that you can be whatever you want! You're the smartest person I know! Hell you can be the minister of magic one day if you wanted!"

She laughed."Wouldn't that be something? But no. I would never want to be the minister of magic...even if I _could_ be." She added smugly.

"Someone needs an ego boost." She could hear the smile in his voice.

"What do you see then Ron? When you imagine your future?"

"I'm not sure. I just know it's the simple things I want. I want a good job. One that pays well, but doesn't take over my entire life. Maybe travel some, become a little more worldly. Eventually I want to...y'know get married...have a family.. grow old..just be happy. I guess that's all.

"I think that sounds lovely."

"Really? Coming from someone who is destined for greater things I would think that it sounds pretty boring."

"Would it surprise you to know that secretly I also dream of a simple life? I just feel that we've been at this for years, and to tell you the truth, simple just sounds...amazing."

"That makes sense. We sure have been through some shite through the years havent we?"

"We have. And after all of it, I feel that we deserve a nice break. I think that I would like to go back to finish school. I would be behind, but I would feel more complete once I had finished my N.E.W.T.S. I would want to maybe travel a little after that as well, see things I haven't seen. Get a job that I am passionate about, one that makes a difference to those who need it. And yes...eventually settle down as well. It would be nice to come home to a family that loves me and is happy that I'm there. Probably not a giant family like yours, but more than my family so it won't be so lonely. A house full of fun, and laughter...and love..."

During her talking she had realized that he had turned onto his side and had propped himself up on his elbow, his head above and slightly to the side of hers. He was staring down at her in a way that made her heart start beating wildly, her sentence trailing off. She felt absolutely exhilarated in a way that she never had before.

"Hermione?" he practically whispered. She had never heard him say her name like that, and she could scarcely breathe as she looked into his eyes and gave him a slow nod. Then his face was coming towards her and she was shutting her eyes. She felt his lips touch hers, and his hand came over to cup her face. They were kissing so softly and it was even better than she could have imagined. She could feel his hand trembling and didn't know if it was from nerves or him trying to hold himself back from moving too fast, but she assumed it was probably both.

She slowly turned onto her side, bringing their bodies closer and he let out a small moan and deepened the kiss. She opened her mouth and then felt his tongue lightly swirling around hers, so she copied the action. She had never kissed anyone like this before, and found she was quite lightheaded. To be kissed like this...and more than that, to be kissed like this by _Ron, it was_ incredible.

A bitter voice in her head told her that she better enjoy this while it lasted, as it would never happen again. She pushed the thought out of her head, she didn't want to think, she just wanted to feel.

They broke away, both panting, his forehead pressed to hers. She stared at his face that was so close that it was blurry, his pale eyelashes practically invisible. His eyes were closed and she felt his breath on her and it was intoxicating. After catching his breath, his lips were on hers again, this time with more urgency. One of his hands was gently caressing her face, the other tangled in her hair. She figured then that she could probably live off of the feeling of him touching her, but she wanted to touch him as well. She reached around to his back, her fingers going just under his shirt hem to touch his skin. He pulled back for just a second to pull the shirt off of his head, and was quickly back to kissing her. She let her hands roam over his naked torso, feeling every dip and curve of him. His skin was like fire, and she needed her skin to be merged with his. He must have had the same idea as he gently pulled her shirt up, and she helped him remove it. Before he could do anything else, she reached behind her back and unhooked her bra. Ron realized what she had done and took hold of the front of it and carefully peeled it off of her. He took a quick glance at her naked chest and she heard his breath become labored before he leaned back into her.

They were kissing frantically at this point, pushing their naked torsos together. She would have never imagined that it would feel this amazing, she felt all consumed by him..it was incredible and it felt so _right._

Suddenly he was gently pushing her and when she complied and rolled back onto her back his body followed, leaning into hers. She felt his erection against her thigh and losing all coherent thought, she pushed her hips up against his, wanting to get closer.

" _ohm_ y _fuckingfuuuck"_ he groaned.

He started kissing a trail down her neck, one of his hands coming up to grab her breast for the first time. His lips continued to trail down and she let out a small gasp as he kissed her nipple. He then took it in his mouth tentatively and started swirling his tongue and sucking while his hand kneaded the other. She let out a small moan, every touch was acting like an electric shock straight to her core. He kissed his way to the other nipple and did the same as he had done the other. She whimpered and he trailed his way back up to her mouth and she took his lips again hungrily, the sounds of their breaths and kisses filling the otherwise silent space. Her hands were running up and down his sides and over his broad shoulders. One of his hands was sweeping the hair off of her forehead, and the other one was between their bodies, trailing downwards. He reached the button of her jeans and undid them slowly, giving her time to make it known if this was okay, but she had no hesitations and lifted her hips in encouragement. He sat up, pulling her jeans and knickers down together, and she lifted her feet so he could fully remove them.

For a second, he sat back, staring at her now fully exposed body. "Perfect" he mumbled, before falling back on top of her. She heard him unbuckle his belt and undo his trousers, but he didn't take them off, his hands returning to explore her upper body.

The ache in her was getting unbearable. She grabbed one of his hands from her chest and pulled it down between her legs, pushing his fingers against her where she needed him most. Ron stopped kissing her and lowered his head to rest next to her neck, breathing heavily on her collarbone. "Show me what to do." he said huskily, his voice slightly muffled by her hair. With her hands guiding, she used his hand to rub herself, her hips rising and falling against him of their own accord. She was almost on the brink, when he hesitantly brought his other hand down and slowly inserted two fingers deep in her body and started moving them in and out. This sent her over the edge and she cried out, her back arching and her breasts pressing into his chest.

He continued until it was clear that she was coming down before he took his hands away. One of his hands gently grasped her shoulder, and the other went inside his own pants. She knew that he had grasped himself when he frantically started pumping. It only took a few seconds before he let out a low moan and she watched his face as he came, before he collapsed next to her, breathing hard.

She pulled her head up and looked at him. "Ron, what...?"

He shook his head and said between breaths. "Wasn't' going... to make it...wouldnt've worked...was too much."

"But we have to..."

"He lightly chuckled, still out of breath. "Give me a minute Hermione. It will still work."

She didn't respond, her limbs still slightly shaking.

He sat up on his elbow again, grabbing his wand and uttering a cleaning spell on himself before looking down at her. "Sorry. Seeing you...wow that was..too fucking hot." he told her with a small lopsided grin.

She felt herself blush and he chuckled again as he took her face in his hands and lightly kissed both of her cheeks followed by a light one on her lips. He leaned back again, his face coming into her view. His expression was now serious, his hands still gently cupping her face.

"Ok?" he asked her, pushing his lips together.

"Yes" she whispered, grabbing her wand and silently casting the contraception charm on herself, him watching the light leave her wand and go into her lower belly, between her hips. They locked eyes and then he was back on her, the heat of his body again fogging all of her thoughts.

The frantic energy of before was gone, and they took their time, as if trying to memorize each other's mouths, tasting each other. They kissed like this for a while, and she had never felt more content, as if nothing else mattered. Her fingers ran through his silky hair then trailed over the stubble on his face. He was like a drug that she could never get enough of now that she had taken it.

She let out a noise of protest when broke away from her and slowly sat back. She watched him as he removed his last shreds of clothing. She had never seen a naked man before so she had nothing to compare him to, but she was spellbound. She stared at the swollen part of him that was such a mystery to her. She was curious, yet suddenly nervous again...how was that going to fit _inside_ of her?

She trailed her eyes up to his face and saw that he was intently watching her staring at him. They stayed like that for several long seconds. He looked at her as if he wanted to say something, but then had thought better of it. He slowly crawled back up her body, laying on her and again capturing her lips.

Without thinking, she reached down and felt him, noting that he was hard yet his skin was soft, and the heat of him _there_ was even more than the rest of his body. She heard his breath hitch at her touch and she let go, grabbing his forearms with both of her hands instead.

She was hyper aware of everything around her as he positioned himself between her legs. She could feel him right there, both of them taking shuddering breaths, their mouths inches apart. Then he slid forward, and she could feel him stretching her, her fingers unconsciously tightening on his arms. As he continued, there was pain, and she let out a few sounds of discomfort. "I'm sorry" he whispered while grasping her face, planting small soft kisses all over it. He reassured her, his thumbs lightly grazing her jawbone, his touches so soft. He went slow and she could feel his body trembling with the effort to keep himself in control.

He stopped when he was completely buried in her, their hips flush, her body sore yet accommodating him. He leaned his head back, catching her eyes and checking to make sure that she was ok. She was shaking a little bit as she took one of her hands from his forearm and trailed it softly down the side of his face. He closed his eyes then leaned down and took her lips again as he slowly pulled almost all of the way out before driving back into her and then doing it again, her gasps matching his thrusts. The feeling was foreign, but eventually she started to feel the pleasure of it, and urged him to go faster by grabbing his waist and pulling him to her. He reached down and gripped her hip while she brought her body up a little to meet his. Together they rocked, both letting out little moans and sighs of pleasure.

"You feel so good." he panted, his eyes screwed up tight, and she knew that he was getting close. His hand snaked down and reached in between their bodies and started rubbing her right above where they were joined. "Come with me" he demanded, as his thrusts started getting harder and going faster, the air filling with sounds of skin slapping skin.

Before long she felt her second orgasm hit her, her walls convulsing around him. She felt him let go as well, letting out a " _bloodyfuckingSHITE_ " before collapsing on her. His weight was heavy but she welcomed it. She would die happily being crushed by his warm body, her breaths shallow yet satisfied.

He had been absolutely perfect. She couldn't have ever imagined that him making love to her would ever feel like _that._ Although the physical part had been amazing, there was an emotional side that had played a huge role in it as well. She had felt so connected to him, body and soul. She had _finally_ felt what it would be like to be loved by Ron Weasley. Being with him had felt like a dream, and now that it was over, reality crashed into her. She remembered why they were there, and why they had done what they had done. Now, they would be able to get out of the circle, and it would go back to being the way that it had been between them for years. _friends_.

Maybe in those lust-filled moments he had seen her as more than that, but she knew that once they were up and dressed, he would revert back. She felt like she had gotten the smallest lick of the world's best ice-cream, and was told that she couldn't have anymore even though she desperately longed for the whole cone.

Ron lifted his body from hers, pulling out of her. He sat up, still leaning over her. "Sorry. Didn't mean to crush you." He said softly, pushing a stray strand of her hair away from her face. This action caused her to burst out into tears, unable to repress her sobs any longer. She saw his bewildered face before he sat up, quickly pulling her into his arms.

**Ron**

Her face was on his bare chest, his arms wrapped tightly around her rubbing small circles on her back. He had absolutely no idea why she was crying, so as he held her, he softly let out reassuring shushing sounds. He told her that it would be okay, even though he had no idea what 'it' was.

There had been a moment before, that he had been so close to telling her that he loved her. The words had wanted to burst out of him, to finally be free after all those years. When he had moved the hair from her face he could have sworn that she was looking at him as if she felt the same. But then she had started uncontrollably crying and he knew that he had imagined the expression. The words had died in him, his concern for her taking over.

As he held her he frantically tried to think of what would cause her to cry like that. Was it because he hurt her? He highly doubted it, as she had only seemed to be in pain a little bit in the beginning, but by the end she had not seemed to hurt at all. Was it relief that it was over? Again, he didn't think that was it, as she had seemed as lost to it as he had been. An unwelcome thought crept into his brain that maybe she had been imagining that he had been someone else. Maybe she had let herself believe that she had been with another man, and after it was over she had remembered that it had just been him the whole time. The thought made a lump come into his throat. If that were the case he desperately hoped that she wouldn't tell him the truth, he didn't think he could handle that.

He held her until she quieted, her sniffs only coming every once in a while. His arms slackened around her and he pulled her back a bit to look at her. "Hermione...what's the matter?" he gently inquired.

She avoided his gaze, not answering so he tried again. "Did I do something wrong?"

She shook her head, still not meeting his eyes. "No Ron, you were...perfect….it's not that."

He gently lifted her chin with his hand so they were looking at each other, his eyes searching. "Then, what is it?"

She shook her head again, closing her eyes. "I'm fine Ron. Just leave it. _Please_."

He nodded, but realized that her eyes were still closed and she couldn't see him. "Ok. Just know that I'm here for you ok? And not just because of what...we just did. You know I care for you right?"

"I know." she responded in a small voice, her eyes still closed.

"And I would do anything you asked of me if you told me to."

She didn't respond, just slightly nodded her head. He watched as she opened her eyes, seeming to remember that they were sitting together naked.

"Can you please turn around while I get dressed?" Her demeanor had changed and she sounded more like herself again, the vulnerability that she had shown moments before seeming to disappear.

"Y-yeah, of course." He turned to face the other way, watching the way the trees were waving in the wind. He realized that the wind was now reaching them so the shield must have been gone. He hurriedly threw his own clothes on, the temperature around them speedily becoming the same as the rest of the forest. He stood up and took a few long strides, and he was easily able to walk outside of the circle. He turned to Hermione who was also now fully clothed, her expression unreadable as she stared at him.

"It worked." he told her, even though it wasn't necessary as she could obviously see that he was standing outside of it.

She didn't respond but started briskly heading back towards the direction of the tent, walking right past him without giving him a second glance. He turned around and gently grabbed her wrist, stopping her. He felt her stiffen, but she didn't turn around or pull away. He walked in a half circle until he was standing right in front of her. He placed his hands on her shoulders, bending slightly to get close to her face. "Please don't act like this towards me...I really can't handle it...especially now."

She just looked at him, biting her lip as if she was forcing herself not to talk to him. "Hermione…"

"I'm not acting any certain way towards you Ron."

"Yes, you are! Something is wrong. Please tell me what it is so I can fix it." He was pleading again, but badly wanted to get to the bottom of why she was acting the way she was.

"I'm cold, and tired and hungry. That's it. I'm fine." She managed a small smile for him, but it didn't reach her eyes and he didn't believe her for a minute.

Nodding his defeat, and unwilling to push her any further, he stepped to the side. They made their way back, shivering and silent. He felt them slip through the wards that had been set, and soon the tent was in view. When they neared it, Harry popped out of it, his face a mixture of relief and frustration. "Almost 4 hours! I was going barmy! What happened out there?"

Hermione gave Harry a quick glance before walking right by him into the tent, saying nothing.

Harry's turned to Ron, his expression baffled. "What _happened_?"

Ron fumbled for words, realizing that they should have thought of some sort of cover story before they left. "Erm, it's a long story."

He could tell that Harry wasn't happy with that answer and when he opened his mouth to retort, Ron cut him off. "Listen, I really can't tell you. I promise you that you don't want or need to know. We are back, and all is well. Let's leave it at that."

Harry stared at him, but ultimately dropped the subject. "Well I've been too worried to go to sleep so you can take watch first."

"Yeah, that's fine. Go ahead." Ron sat down. He didn't mind taking the watch, he was grateful that Harry had stopped asking questions and he knew he wouldn't be able to sleep anyway.

Once he was alone, he let his thoughts wander. He thought of the way Hermione had felt, how blissfully happy he had been when they had been together. To be so amazingly high from that feeling only to come crashing down so soon after was rough. He blamed himself though. He had known that she didn't see him in that way, and never would have had sex...made love to him if they hadn't stumbled into bloody Virgin's Circle.

Maybe a part of him had thought that if he could do that one thing right, she would be able to see him in a different way. People who were _just friends_ didn't do what they had done, so in one way or another, her perspective of him had forever changed. How it had changed, he didn't know. He only knew what he had felt, what she had _seemed_ to have felt.

He thought it had been phenomenal, and she had told him that he had been ' _perfect'._ Did she mean perfect as a friendly term? Or perfect as in a lover's term. He wasn't sure, but he had nothing else to think about as he sat outside for the rest of the night, still not tired as he watched the sun come up.


	3. Chapter 3

**Ron**

A few nights later, Ron was woken suddenly from a nightmare in which Hermione had screamed at him that he was a burden and demanded him to leave. She yelled at him to go, but this time to not come back. He had tried to convince her to let him stay, but she had drawn her wand on him and that was when he had woken up. His heart beating fast, he quickly remembered that it wasn't real and reminded himself that she had told him that they needed him and he held onto that fact while trying to calm himself.

He didn't know what time it was, but it was still dark outside and he figured that it must be somewhere in the early morning hours. He heard Harry lightly snoring sound asleep on his bed and knew that Hermione was still on watch.

He figured he should probably try and get some sleep, but he didnt feel tired anymore. Instead he just laid there thinking of more ways to make the tension between them cease. All three of them were feeling it. Besides making half-hearted plans of what to do next, there was almost no talking between them whatsoever. Hermione had been intentionally avoiding him. If he managed to get close to her she would dart away, telling him about something that she just had to do at that very moment. It was different to how it had been when she was angry, now she seemed almost scared of him. He could (almost) deal with anger that he deserved, but this was unbearable. It was almost as if he were a stranger how she was being unnecessarily polite while spouting off excuses as to why she couldn't have a conversation with him. He knew it would only be a matter of time before she would let him talk to her, so he kept telling himself to be patient even though the waiting was fraying his nerves.

His thoughts were interrupted by Hermione coming inside the tent. He watched as she gently shook Harry awake. Harry stood up and walked outside while Hermione fell onto her bed, not even bothering to change her clothes or take off her boots. He stared at her hoping that she would turn to look at him, but she was facing away and didn't seem as if she was going to move at all. She must have been exhausted, because only minutes later he heard her breathing become even and knew that she had fallen asleep.

He quietly slid out of bed and padded his way to the front of the tent, slipping out. He grabbed his boots right at the entrance and put them on, making his way to Harry. He sat down quietly next to him, and together they stared at the small fire in front of them.

Harry broke the silence first. "So, you want to explain to me what's been going on the last few days?" His gaze was still on the fire, but Ron could sense the curiosity behind the question. Harry hadn't pressed the issue again since they had returned, but Ron was sure that he wanted to know why his two best friends were now so formal towards each other.

He sighed, "Here's the thing. She'd kill me if I told you...but then again, I've no idea what to do."

Harry turned to him for the first time. "I'm not going to pick sides."

"You won't have to! I just need...I just need to know where to go from here I guess."

"So what happened? I assume it has to do with when you two went to go find berries.'" he lightly chuckled, putting his hands in the air making the quotation signs.

"Yeah...and _then_ we stumbled into Virgin's Circle."

Harry's smile vanished. "What?! You mean it's in _this_ forest?"

"Yeah, well, apparently it pops up in random heavily wooded areas...doesn't stay in one place...reckon so nobody goes looking for it."

Harry looked dumbfounded. "So you and Hermione d-"

"Yes." Ron cut him off.

"Woah. That's...I mean... I don't know what to say...blimey."

"Sooo naturally, she hates me now." He dropped his head, not wanting Harry to see the defeated look he was sure was on his face.

"So it was...bad?" Harry asked, seemingly cautious of asking.

"That's the thing!" Ron exclaimed. "It wasn't bad! Actually it was bloody amazing... fucking incredible."

Harry waved his hands in front of him. "No details please!"

Ron chuckled, his face reddening a bit. "I wasn't going to give you a play by play!"

Harry made the gagging gesture and they both let out a small laugh.

Ron went on "But...afterwards, she burst into tears. And then when she was done crying... she changed. For a minute there it was as if she...but now she wants nothing to do with me. She's been treating me as if I'm contagious or something, and I don't know why."

Harry didn't say anything for several long seconds. "This may be insensitive...but maybe she doesn't share the same point of view on how great things went?"

Ron thought back. He remembered the way that she had grabbed onto him, the desperate way that she had kissed him, the way that they had fit together so perfectly. He shook his head. "No... don't ask me how I know, but I know that isn't the case."

Harry looked deep in thought. "Well then, I have no idea either. I've never been any good at knowing how the female mind works, and I'm sorry I couldn't help you figure it out...but shite mate"

"I love her Harry." He blurted out. He certainly hadn't planned to divulge that particular fact to Harry just then, although he was pretty sure Harry had figured it out already when he had seen him destroy the locket.

He was right, Harry didn't seem at all surprised, and gave him a smirk. "I know. And just not because of the locket either."

"That obvious huh?" He sighed and ran his hand across his jaw. "D'you think _she_ knows?"

Harry seemed to think about the question. "No. I don't think so. Probably the only thing in the world she _doesn't_ know."

Ron sat back on his arms, his head leaned back looking at the dark tree branches above them. "Well even if she did know, it's not like it would change anything. She certainly doesn't have feelings like that for me."

Harry smirked again. "I'm not so positive about that mate."

Years of squashing any hopeful thoughts of her caring for him as more than a friend made it a knee-jerk reaction to deny this was the case. Ron glared at him."Yeah. ok."

"I'm not saying that I know how extensive her feelings for you are, but I know that they're _there_. You didn't see how she was when you were gone...she was a mess."

He felt the familiar pang of guilt in his chest at what he had put her through. "I will always feel awful about that... _believe_ me. But that still doesn't mean that she could possibly see me the way that I see her." He gave a humorous laugh. "She's _way_ too smart to go falling for someone like me. Someone who has nothing to offer her except for fuck-up after fuck-up...seriously it's the one thing that I exeed expectations in."

"Maybe try talking to her. You just might surprise each other."

"Oh I know how that conversation would go. Me- 'Hermione, did you know that I'm in love with you?' Hermione- *grabs wand and hexes my bollocks off* Yep, that would be about how it would go."

Harry laughed. "You're impossible."

"And yet _another_ reason why I'm not good enough for her! See what I'm saying?"

Harry just shook his head. They stared at the fire in silence for a while before Harry let out a noise like he had just realized something. "Oh my god! I just realized. Before you two left that day, she had tried to make _me_ go with her. What if I would have gone and it was her and I who ended up in that circle?" His eyes widened with the thought.

Ron grimaced. "Well then...best mate or not, I would have _had_ to kill you." he replied, and they gave slight grins to each other.

A smile crept on Ron's face. "Although you just admitted to me that you're a virgin, and seeing as my baby sister was your last girlfriend...that makes me very happy."

Harry ignored the last statement. "Trust me. I'm very glad that it wasn't me who went with her." He put his hand on Ron's shoulder. "I really do hope you two can work this all out...I mean, you always do."

Ron nodded, hoping Harry was right. "Thanks. For that, and for listening..I really needed to get some of it out of me." He stood up. "I'm knackered now though, so I hope you don't mind being alone again."

"Harry just shrugged. "You're welcome. Go to bed."

Ron turned around into the tent, and headed straight for his bed. He laid down, staring at Hermione's sleeping form and pondering what to do. He decided that if nothing had changed tomorrow during the day, he would join her while she was on her night watch and make her talk to him. They needed to clear the air, regardless if she wanted to or not. He tried to decide what exactly to say when he would confront her, but didnt feel as if anything he was thinking was adequate enough. He decided to just wing it and be honest with her (although he didn't want to be _too_ honest and scare her away) With a newfound hope in his chest from making a plan, he drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

**Ron**

The next day went just about the same as the last, with Hermione being tight lipped but polite when he did manage to get a few words out of her. He spent most of his time with Harry, who was being decidedly more cheerful, probably to make things less tense. He knew Harry wouldn't tell Hermione what he knew, and did not regret confiding in him. At one point Ron had quickly and quietly told him of his plan to force her to talk to him and Harry agreed that it needed to be done.

That night, after she had been outside for about an hour, Ron brought out two cuppas.

"Here. Thought you'd might like this."He handed her one steaming cup and she took it from him.

"Thanks." She uttered, but did not look at him. Her body was tense and it didn't seem as if she was going to say anything else.

This was going to be harder than he thought.

He gathered all of his courage, and sat down on the ground in front of her "We need to talk."

**Hermione**

She looked up at him. His eyes were piercing hers and she knew that he wanted some sort of explanation for how she had been acting towards him.

"I don't think that's such a good idea Ron."

His eyes narrowed. "Oh so the alternative is to just keep on going like this? I'm _miserable_ Hermione. I will take you being mad at me any day over this avoidance and being fake bull shite."

Her eyebrows went up. She had no idea that was how she had been making him feel. She was only trying to avoid him because she didn't trust herself around him anymore. She was terrified that she would say or do something to humiliate herself and make him think that she was a pathetic girl with unrequited love for her best friend. Which was, in actuality, the truth of it.

"You're right." She said slowly, trying to find a fast way to fix this. "I haven't been going about this the right way. Our focus should be Harry... this mission."

"Forget the bloody mission and the bloody wizarding world for a second! I'm talking about our relationship. How are we going to fix whatever it is that is going on with _us_?" She could tell that he was trying hard to keep his cool.

She gulped. "Us?"

He made an exasperated sound. "Yes! Do you think that we are just going to go the rest of our lives not talking about what happened between us? That's so unreasonable."

She tried to slow her heartbeat. How _could_ she talk about what had happened between them without giving herself away? Or what would she say if he then pressed her about why she had cried? She knew that she needed to stop this conversation before it really started.

"Ok. What's there to say Ron? I personally think we're better off not talking about it."

His face dropped. She could tell that whatever his thoughts on the matter, he cared a great deal. She was sure that he was feeling guilty about it all, especially because she had refused to tell him why she had gotten so upset. The best plan of action was to try and convince him that she was ok so he didn't have to feel that way anymore.

She continued, feeling like her chest was full of lead. "I'm fine. Honestly we need to just put this all behind us and forget it even happened. It's not really a big deal Ron. It didn't _mean_ anything."

He dropped his head down, staring at the ground and not speaking for several long seconds. "It meant something to me." he said quietly. She saw tears welling in his eyes, and he quickly stood up, hastily wiping them away in embarrassment. When he spoke again, his voice was cold and uncaring. "But ok. I'll try and forget it ever happened, just as you want. I'm going in now to try and get some sleep. Goodnight Hermione." He walked back into the tent.

She shut her eyes as her own tears fought to escape. He had looked so broken and at that moment, she hated herself.

**Hermione**

The next night, the three were sitting at the table running some ideas around. The symbol that kept popping up had to be important. When Harry had mentioned that he had seen the symbol on Mr. Lovegood's necklace, she knew they had to find out more. Hermione was convinced that going to see Xenophilius Lovegood should be their next plan. Harry had been adamantly against the idea, thinking that it was too much of a risk. The two had argued in circles, not really getting anywhere.

"He has stuck his neck out for you before Harry! I don't see the big deal with going for one quick visit!"

"That's exactly why we shouldn't go! He's a supporter of me, he's probably being watched!"

Hermione looked to Ron. He had been sitting there mostly silent, looking bored by the whole thing, his arms crossed and not looking up.

"What do you think Ron?" she asked. "Do you think we should go ask Mr. Lovegood about the symbol?"

Ron moved his stare up from the table to look at her. Slowly he leaned forward, until he was as close as he could get with the table being in the way. His eyes burrowed into hers and she felt hot all over from his intense stare.

"I agree with you. I _trust_ you with this Hermione."

She stopped breathing and felt her eyes widen at his words. He abruptly stood up, pushing his chair noisily away behind him before storming off to somewhere else in the tent. She stayed frozen where she was, her eyes blurring until she blinked out the tears that went in a straight line down her face.

Harry hadn't moved from his chair, and was awkwardly looking at his hands obviously not knowing what to say. She stood up and mumbled to him that she was going to take a shower and hurried to the bathroom.

She hastily undressed, her mind desperate to pinpoint at what point everything had gone so wrong. Once she got under the warm spray, she finally let go and cried the tears that had been threatening her off and on the last few days.

Maybe Ron did have feelings for her? He sure seemed desperate to talk about things. He had used the word "us" as if there was meaning behind it. And he was obviously distressed, way more so even than when he had first come back. She thought of the words she had spoken to him last night and groaned. Could she have been any more cruel and uncaring? Maybe she should try to talk to him, and more importantly, let him talk to her as he clearly wanted to.

She decided to sleep on it. She hadn't been sleeping very well and wanted to have a clear mind before going to him.

She dried off and put on her pyjamas. When she came out, the tent was already dark. She walked straight to her bed and laid down, falling asleep almost immediately.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hermione**

The opening of the tent flap woke her up. She instantly realized that there was a storm outside. The wind was howling and the rain was noisily pelting off of the top of the water-proofed tent. She watched as Harry went out, heavily covered in rain-proof clothing. She watched as Ron then stumbled in. He was soaking wet and she knew he would most likely head straight to the shower to warm himself up.

She closed her eyes, pretending to be asleep, knowing he would have to walk right past her bed to the bathroom. She heard his heavy footsteps get closer, and when he was passing by her bed, she heard him stop. She tried not to give away that she was awake, knowing that he was watching her. After a few agonizing seconds, she heard him sigh and continue towards the bathroom.

She closed her eyes and tried to sleep, but her heart was thumping hard in her chest, images of him naked in the shower flooding her brain. She tossed and turned, uncomfortable in more ways than one. Before too long, she heard the flap open, and he walked out, wearing a t-shirt and pyjama bottoms. He started heading towards his own bed and when he walked by, the smell of soap and _Ron_ permeated her senses. It was like she was no longer in control of her actions as she sat up and cried out, "Ron!"

**Ron**

Her voice rang out, calling his name. He stopped walking and slowly turned around to look at her, his brow furrowed, questioning her. She stood up and slowly walked towards him as he drank in the sight of her in the dim light. Her hair was a frizzy mess, her t-shirt askew as if she had been tossing and turning in bed. He was mesmerized by her, and his heart beat faster the closer she got.

Swiftly she flung herself to him and he easily caught her, wrapping her body in his arms, their lips crashing into each other eagerly. He had no time to really think about what was happening or why she was kissing him, as all logic had left his brain. He held her as she practically climbed his body, seemingly trying to get as close to him as much as humanly possible. They stumbled to her bed and clumsily fell back, not breaking apart at all. Hands hungrily roamed, both breathless and unrestrained, teeth clashing.

His hand went up her top, squeezing her breast and she gasped when he pinched and rolled her nipple in between his fingers. She was clawing his back with one hand, pulling his hair with the other. He bent to start sucking on her neck, and she let out a loud whimper. Both froze, hoping that Harry hadn't heard, even though it was unlikely over the noise of the storm. When they heard nothing after several long seconds, Ron returned his attention to her neck. Her body arched into his, her hands under his shirt on his chest. He reached down, cupping her between her legs over her thin pyjama bottoms. He pushed his eager fingers against her, finding that she was scorching and soaked.

He needed more. "wannatasteyou" he groaned before sliding down her body and quickly pulling her bottoms off of her. He heard her breath quicken as he settled himself between her legs. His hands gripped her outer thighs as he tentatively started tasting her. The whimpers that she was emitting spurred him on, and he started stroking her harder with his tongue. He reached around her leg and added two fingers to the mix, her body bucking as he pumped them in and out of her. He started sucking on her hard and he felt her let go, her hand over her own mouth quieting her cries.

When she was quiet he wiped his face on the back of his hand and slowly crawled back up her body, capturing her lips with his. She pulled him to her, not seeming to mind at all that she was tasting herself on him. The thought making him even harder than he had been. Fuck, he wanted her. "Want-you- _so fucking bad_." He groaned in between kisses. She let out a noise that was somewhere between a groan and a whimper. She reached down then to his waist, grabbing the elastic of his pyjamas, and started pushing them down his body.

Suddenly, the image of her bursting into tears flooded his brain. He remembered that they had barely been speaking... _because_ they had done before what they were about to do. He still didn't have the answers to what was plaguing her, and he couldn't let it get to that point.

He jumped back from her, pulling his pyjama pants back up. "No." he rasped out. "No." Her eyes that had just looked heavy in lust quickly changed, opening in surprise. Before he could lose his nerve, he stood up and left her, almost running back to the bathroom.

Once he was in there he put a silencing spell over the small space, grabbed his hair and yelled at the top of his lungs trying to get out his frustration. It only mildly helped, and he slid down and sat on the floor, feeling dejected. His fists were clenched at his sides, his body slightly shaking.

Would it be even _worse_ between them now? Maybe she just had a lapse of judgment out there, and would be even more upset with him. He had been so _close_ to taking her again. Pulling away from her had been excruciating but the rational part of him was glad that he had done it as he didn't want to screw things up any more than they already were.

He stayed there for quite a while before cautiously stepping out. Her back was turned away from him and she was almost completely under her blanket, as if trying to hide. He quickly made it to his own bed and did the same. He laid there for a long while, sleep not anywhere close to taking him. Somehow he knew that she was also not asleep, but neither of them were willing to talk, so it was a miserable and lonely night.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

He realized that he must had fallen asleep at some point when something woke him up. He laid still, not having yet opened his eyes or moving at all.

The first thing he noticed was that the rain had stopped, the second thing he noticed was a feeling that someone was standing quietly near him. He also knew without a doubt who that someone was. He still didn't move as he heard her kneel beside his bed, she was obviously trying to be very quiet.

He felt her hair tickle his face and then he felt her slow breath close to his ear. "You were wrong. You _were_ the right person." She whispered so quietly that he was amazed that he could hear her. He then felt her lips very lightly graze his cheek before he sensed her quickly but quietly walking away, going out to relieve Harry of his watch.

He let out a huge chunk of air that he had been holding and thought back to what he had told her when he had been trying to calm her nerves.

" _I know that this isn't the right time, place, or...person that you would have wanted"_

But she had just told him that he _had_ been the right person. Not that she had meant to truly tell him of course, but that wasn't important. If she thought that he had been the right person, then she had wanted it to be him. Not someone else, _him._

His brain tried to comprehend what that meant. Obviously she had to have feelings for him that were stronger than a good friendship. Maybe it all made more sense now that he had let himself truly believe that she could possibly care for him like that.

He felt elated, hope filling him. He saw a light at the end of the tunnel. He would convince her, or at least try his damndest to do so. He smiled softly to himself, letting sleep take him away again.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The next day, Ron kept to himself. He wanted to see how she would react if roles were reversed so he went out of his way to avoid her. Nothing really significant happened, but he caught her numerous times watching him with a slightly sad, slightly curious look on her face. He imagined that she looked the same as he had probably looked when she had been avoiding him. He didn't want to hurt her of course, but her reaction made him smile to himself. If he had any doubt before that she really cared, it was gone now.

A little while after dinner, Ron confronted Harry.

"Hey. You mind going away for a little bit and giving us some privacy?"

"Why, so you two can shag?" Harry smiled jokingly.

"No you tosser, so we can talk."

"When? Now?"

"Yeah, if you don't mind." He felt bad for asking Harry to go away, but Harry's face told him that he didn't take offense.

"Sure thing. I'll just be outside somewhere I guess. Give me a shoutout when it's safe to come back in." And without another word, he walked outside the tent.

Ron turned around and headed towards the table, where Hermione had spread out a bunch of books, and looked to be in deep concentration

"Let's leave the books and go sit down on the couch." He suggested, trying to sound confident and relaxed.

"No thank you." She answered immediately, not looking up at him.

"So we're back to that again?" He smiled at her.

She looked up at him baffled. "You were ignoring me all day today and now you're smiling at me?"

"I was just conducting an experiment. How come you can dish it and not take it?" He raised his eyebrows, still smiling at her.

Her cheeks flushed. "For your information, I _was_ going to talk to you before you-" She cut herself off abruptly.

It didn't matter that she had stopped herself from saying it, because he already knew what she had been going to say. "Before I told you no." He said gently, no longer smiling.

She looked at him, and slowly nodded her head.

"It's not that I didn't _want_ to. Bloody hell, of course I wanted to."

"You don't have to explain anything to me Ron. I already know."

He narrowed his eyes. "What is it that you think you know?"

She sighed. "That you don't see me like that. I know that what happened between us complicated things, of course it did, how could it not?"

"That's an understatement. But how do you think I 'see' you?"

She looked a bit taken back by the question. "Well. We've been best friends for years, and in one night we had to go from barely even talking to…" She sighed again. "The point is, after something like that, there are bound to be certain...feelings that otherwise wouldn't be there."

"I think you're dancing around the subject."

"I am not."

"Do you regret it happening?"

She paused. "Whether I do or not, it doesn't matter. It had to happen either way. We were trapped in there."

"But it almost happened a second time, and we weren't trapped then. And by the way, _I_ don't regret it. Any part of it." He crossed his arms, challenging her.

She stared at him for a moment before dropping her gaze."

"Come _on_ Hermione. Talk to me. Let's start with what you whispered in my ear last night."

Her head snapped up, her face paling considerably. "You-you-what?"

He decided to be bold. "Are you in love with me?"

Her face became even paler. "I...does it matter?"

"Of _course_ it matters!"

"Why?" She replied in a small voice

But he was done with her skirting around the answer that he desperately needed to hear. "Sod this!" He threw his hands in the air. "Hermione!" his voice almost a shout. "Because I am in love with you!"

She looked at him, eyes wide in surprise before her face changed and she shook her head sadly. "No Ron. You _think_ you are in love with me because of what happened between us. Also, I'm the only girl who you have been around lately and it's perfectly natural to feel-"

"You've got to be kidding me!" he shouted, cutting her off. He ran his hands down his face and exasperatedly groaned.

"I'm sorry that I'm frustrating you. I just want to stop you from saying something that you'll regret later."

"So you don't believe me?"

"No, I don't. Once this is over, you'll probably scamper off with some...girl who is not at all like me. Someone _fun_ , probably blonde and...perky."

Now it was his turn to look at her as if she was crazy. "What in the bloody hell...?"

She just shrugged in response.

"Listen-" he sighed, trying to control the urge to grab her shoulders and snog some sense into her. "I am not delusional. I know what I'm talking about. This isn't a new thing. I have fancied you for _years."_

She seemed unable to reply, and just stared at him so he continued. "What do I need to do to make you realize that it's not just a temporary thing? I'm being bloody serious! I've loved you since...I don't know...4th or 5th year? Probably even longer, I just didn't realize it. I've been wanting you secretly for so long, that it's literally ingrained into me."

She still was just sitting there watching him, not making any move to speak.

"Fuck. I've already jumped over this ledge, might as well go all out. I have always seen you in my future. Regardless of how you feel, you're _it_ for me I'm sure of it. I want to _be_ with you. If you'll have me of course. I'm in it for the long haul, Hermione. I want to go on dates with you...to snog you silly after we argue...to hold your hand, to touch you whenever I want. Shite, I want to eventually _marry_ you... have a big bloody wedding...or small, whatever you'd like. I want to wake up next to you every morning and watch you get older with me. I want to impregnate you with little ginger babies...have a family with you. I'm rambling now and I _know_ I've gone too far, but you weren't _stopping_ me so I'm...stopping now."

Her mouth was now gaped open. They silently stared at each other before she burst into laughter. Ron took a step back in surprise, feeling a little hurt. He watched as tears started streaming down her face, her hands wrapped around her middle.

"Oi! I pour my heart out to you and _this_ is how you react?" He grumbled, crossing his arms. "I shouldn't have bloody bothered."

She was still laughing, but he could tell that she was trying to compose herself. Finally she stood up and walked towards him, a grin plastered on her face. She took his face in her hands, and reached her lips up to his. The kiss was soft and sweet, making amends for her laughter.

She pulled back, his face still in her hands. "For _so_ long I...I love you too Ron."

He smiled. "Yeah?"

"Yeah." She confirmed.

She moved her hands to wrap her arms around his neck as his hands slipped around her waist, holding her to him. "But..." She started.

He looked down at her, quizzically and she continued. "let's hold off for a long time on those ginger babies alright?"

His face heated up. "Yeah... that's why you should have stopped me...just came out."

"No. It was lovely. Every word. Lovely...and very entertaining." She laughed.

"I won't complain about my embarrassment anymore if it can make you laugh." He lightly chuckled. "I love to see you happy." He grimaced. "Damn I sound so... _sappy_...shite."

She tightened her arms around him. "I'll take it." They smiled at each other for a long moment before Hermione moved back, her face suddenly clouded over.

"We love each other...and I'm...so incredibly, overwhelmingly _happy_ about it. But Ron...we are still in the middle of this mission. The entire wizarding world is in our hands."

He moved towards her again. "I know. But now we have each other in a way that we haven't before...at least I hope we do." He paused and she nodded her head at him.

"This won't change anything." He took her hands, but he could see it in her eyes, her determined look that told him that he wasn't going to win this.

"Of course it will change. It will change _everything._ You see how the last few weeks have been, we haven't been all in as we should..our hearts were elsewhere."

"Yeah, but we were fighting! We weren't happy, we were-"

She let out a small whimper, as he noticed that her eyes had welled up. "You know as well as I do that being happy would only further pull us away from this. We can't have distractions Ron...even good ones."

He grasped her hands tighter, feeling desperation. "Well I can't just lock my feelings away Hermione! Especially now that I know you feel the same! You can't ask me to do something like that."

"That's exactly what you need to do. Both of us need to." She replied quietly before again looking up at him. "You told me that you would do anything for me..whatever I asked. I'm asking you for this now."

He knew she was right but was so goddamn bothered by it that he tried to hang on to something. "Yeah, well not this. No."

"Let's just get this done first ok? I'm trying to stay absolutely positive that we _will_ win this, I need to hope...you make me hope."

He clasped her hands tighter.

She sighed. "The moment it is over though...I'm all yours. In every way possible...yours."

He raised his eyebrows. " _Every_ way possible?" She rolled her eyes but couldn't hide her smirk. "Yes, you randy git!"

"Ugggghhhh fuck! Alright! But I'm _not_ happy about this."

She gave him a light peck on the lips. "Thank you for understanding."

"Yeah yeah" He grumbled.

She started to back away from him, but he sprung forward and grabbed her, pulling her in for a desperate kiss. Their bodies pressed tight as their mouths moved together. They broke away, panting in each other's faces.

"One more night?" He whispered.

Her face was sorrowful as she shook her head. "No Ron. That will only make it too hard."

"But you make _me_ too hard!" He whined.

She scowled at him. "For goodness sakes Ronald!"

He pulled his lower lip down as she stepped away again, still refusing to let her hands go.

"Friends?" She smiled at him.

He sighed, scowling. "For now, yes."

She stepped forward and gave him a quick peck on his cheek before pulling her hands out of his and turning around.

He stared at her backside as she walked away. "You can't control my thoughts though!" He yelled out at her.

She shook her head, but didn't stop walking or turn around, heading for the front of the tent. He felt his heart pang in his chest, but he smiled. He had something _amazing_ to look forward to.


End file.
